Year Joined MKLM: 1985 Country: United States City: Milwaukee, WI Focus: Pastoral Ministry Project(s): MKLM Executive Director People Served: All MKLM missioners, their families, and employees Project Goal(s): Provide organizational leadership, in accordance with direction and policy established by Board of Directors and General Assembly to ensure growth, financial stability, and respect as a Catholic lay mission organization.

Personal Data
Before entering the Maryknoll Lay Mission Program in 1985 Sam was a program director for Catholic Social Services of the diocese of Phoenix. He worked specifically in aging services programs of the diocese.

Sam and his wife Cecilia were very involved in their parish, St. Augustine's, a principally Hispanic parish and in the Latin American Committee of the diocese that dealt with justice issues in Latin America as well as the growing immigration issues and specifically in the Sanctuary Movement for political refugees from Latin American Countries.

Prior to his life in Arizona, Sam was a Holy Cross Associate in Chile and before that he worked with the Holy Cross Justice and Peace Commission at Notre Dame, IN and served as the social ministries coordinator at Little Flower Parish, South Bend, IN. Although he and Cecilia entered Maryknoll from Phoenix, Sam grew up on the great plains of central Kansas.

During college at Kansas State he was involved in outreach ministry of the Catholic Student Center at K-State and in Latin American affairs on campus.

During Sam's years with Maryknoll, he has worked extensively in rural ministry and social development projects in rural southern Chile. In his first stint in Chile he eventually became the director of the Social Services Department of the diocese of Linares, Chile. He worked diligently in the process of the plebiscite in Chile that eventually led to the country’s return to democracy.

In 1991 he was asked to come to NY as the director of the Maryknoll Lay Mission Program. During his time the program transitioned from being a program of the Maryknoll Society to being a separate entity within the Maryknoll Mission family.

Sam served on the first leadership team of the Maryknoll Lay Missioners (official title: Maryknoll Mission Association of the Faithful). In 1996 Sam and Cecilia and their family returned to Chile and to the diocese of Linares. Sam worked in social development programs and education. He also served as the Chile Regional Coordinator and the co-area coordinator of the Latin America Area for Maryknoll Lay Missioners.